Rack system: heat cable vs heat pad

i want to build my own rack for my boas but I dont know what would be better.Opinions?

There is nothing worse than heat cable based on my experience, the heat is unshaven , cables develop a hot spot, heat tape is the way to go or heat pad depending on the brand.

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ok thank you for the advice

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there is a type of wood that you guys recommend? I did y research but I didn’t found nothing

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Have a look through this thread … Check out my rack!

Hopefully @chesterhf can pop up and give you any extra details if you need them :wink:

Melamine is a good option. I’ve built a few racks from that and it’s very durable. It can hold a lot of weight and doesn’t warp like some other options.

Personally I would recommend expended PVC instead of wood

Melamine looks great at first but give it a few years and it will start to sag, and crack, with the humidity and heat and normal cold and hot expension over the years it’s really inevitable.

Other factor it’ SUPER heavy better hope you don’t have to move.

Now expended PVC will initially be more expensive but it is lighter and fite retardant which to me is a big added bonus as well.

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That is true, PVC is fire retardant and much lighter. But that too will sag in time even more so than melamine board.

I had a melamine rack for over 12 years without any sagging, and I live in MN where the temperature changes are extreme. The PVC rack I have now is maybe 5 years old and already sags.

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I would have preferred PVC over melamine for it’s durability, portability and lighter weight, but it’s just so so much more expensive. Melamine is $28 for a 4’ x 8’ sheet, and PVC is ~$120. The rack I built cost somewhere between $200-$250 for everything - tubs, heat tape, castors included. To build a 5-layer FB70 rack out of PVC would be wildly expensive.

In order to save $$$, there was just some things I chose to compromise on. Melamine over PVC saves a lot of money, but getting tubs straight from Freedom Breeder, THG heat tape, and a Herpstat 1 were things I wasn’t willing to compromise on.

If you’re planning on making a rack, I would just think about what things are important to you (cost, weight, durability, safety, aesthetics, etc) and which things (if any) that you are willing to compromise on.

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